


Rainy Days

by M_E_Scribbles



Series: The Trek Saga [2]
Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: End of the World, F/F, Hiking, Kissing in the Rain, POV Clarke Griffin, Pandemics, Post-Apocalypse, Protective Clarke, Rain
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-26
Updated: 2017-03-29
Packaged: 2018-09-20 03:09:51
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,449
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9472838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/M_E_Scribbles/pseuds/M_E_Scribbles
Summary: A couple of snippets on how Clarke and friends dealt with rainy days on their long walk home.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Some asked me about how Clarke and Co. dealt with rain since I never really mentioned it in 'Trek'. Well, here are a few chapters to answer that question!
> 
> The first chapter takes place in chapter 12, just as everyone is recovering from being sick and just before Costia and Clarke go scavenging together.
> 
>  
> 
> Comments and kudos are always welcomed!

Of course our good luck when it came to the weather couldn’t hold out forever. We’d had a few days of sprinkles here and there, and one day when the wind was so strong I thought one of us would be knocked over. So that first day of walking after everyone had been sick was cut blessedly short by a storm. One minute we were slowly making our way down the trail, Raven and I doing all we could to support our friends who weren’t fully recovered yet, and the next I was staring up at purplish-grey clouds and flinching away from echoing booms of thunder.

“Get the tents!” Costia wheezed, already swinging her bag onto the ground.

“No, the tents won’t hold up under this,” Lexa shook her head. She glanced around at the trees surrounding us, like she was searching for something.

“What?” I asked. My eyes never left the clouds, I watched the swirling shades of grey rise and lower and swirl around each other. “You’ve got an idea, spit it out.”

Lexa sank to her knees slowly, like she was too tired to hold her body up anymore. “You and Raven need to find somewhere for us to ride this out Griffin. A building or something.”

“Woods, I don’t know anything about this area. How are we supposed to find anything?”

“There was a sign a little ways back that pointed to the left, toward the river, and said their was a campground nearby.” Luke suggested between short but harsh coughs.

“I saw it,” Raven nodded. “Let’s go find it Clarkey. One of us can come back for the others after we’ve made sure it’s safe.”

Taking a moment, I glanced at my little group of recovering invalids. I hated to leave them alone but I knew they didn’t have the energy to waste searching for the campground. Raven and I were the quickest and smartest choice.

“Fine,” I sighed, sliding my backpack off and leaving it to rest next to Luke. I tightened the harness on my rifle a bit; making sure it was snug and ready in case I needed it. “We’ll go as quickly as possibly. You guys just… I don’t know. Find somewhere to ride this out until we come back for you.”

Before any of them could reply, Raven and I were gone. We ran back down the trail to the sign Luke mentioned, and then turned to follow the directions carved into the wooden post. It didn’t take long to find the campgrounds. It was maybe a mile or two down the trail. We made our way through the abandoned grounds slowly, checking for people who could be hiding out there. Not that we wanted to hurt them or anything, we just wanted to know if were would be sharing the area with people who could be threats.

Thankfully we didn’t find anybody. We searched the bathrooms near the tent area, trying but not quite succeeding at fighting the gags the smells caused, the office buildings, and the few cabins we could see as quickly as we could. I pointed out the giant gazebo in the middle of the grounds, right next to the lake. There were a couple dozen hammocks strung up inside with mosquito netting draped around them.

“Do you think that was part of the charm of this place before?” Raven questioned as we approached.

“I think someone was using this place as their home. Why would they just leave everything behind though?” I replied, using the tip of the barrel on my rifle to move the netting aside.

“Maybe they wanted to go home.” Raven shrugged. She didn’t really care, she was just happy they’d have some place to ride out the approaching storm.

I nodded. What else could I do? The place had been lived in and then abandoned. “Do you want to go get the others or stay here and straighten everything?”

“I’ll get the others.” Raven replied, swinging her rifle until it hung down her back. “Lexa and Luke are barely strong enough to walk but with Octavia’s help I’ll be able to get them here. Harper will help Costia, even though Costia was never as sick as Harper got.”

She rolled her eyes at the thought of the other girls. She held up her pinkie for me to wrap mine around. I smiled and squeezed her finger just a little, “Just hurry up and go so you can get back.”

“I’ll be back with our friends before you know it.”

I nodded, “make sure you bring Costia along too.”

****

While my cousin was retrieving our friends I straightened the gazebo up. I cleaned out the two fireplaces and pulled the overflowing trash bags from the bins, thankfully finding new bags underneath. Then I used my feet to kick out as much dirt and as many twigs and leaves as I could manage. Once all that was done, I took another look around. I went back to the office building and actually looked through all the rooms since Raven and I had only opened doors to check for people.

Inside one room I found shelves full of canned food. There were even a few jars of homemade jam. I grabbed what I could and headed back to the gazebo. After three more trips, I had enough food for our group for at least two days. Happy with the food, I made my way over to the three cabins nearby. I found pots and pans in one of them, and I managed to snag enough pillows for all of us from the beds.

“Why not just sleep in the cabins?” Costia sneered when the group finally arrived.

“You can if you’d like. But this place is more centralized and harder to sneak up on.” I replied as I moved to help Harper into one of the hammocks.

“Fine,” Costia said. She glanced back at the guys, “Come on Lexa. We’re sleeping in a real bed tonight.”

“No, I’m not.” Lexa replied shortly. “I’m staying where the others can see me. I don’t think I’d feel safe in the cabins.”

She tried to argue with her but she wouldn’t budge. She had no desire to sleep anywhere but near the rest of us. She stomped as hard as her weakened state would allow, she shrieked a little too, all to no avail. Lexa made her point clear when she tossed down her bag and clambered into a hammock with a sigh.

I tried to hide my smile, but really there was no use. Seeing Costia get shot down was one of my favorite pastimes.

“Do you need any help?” Octavia asked as she appeared next to me.

“Want to help me start a fire?” I handed her the lighter and paper I’d found in the office.

She nodded and moved slowly toward the fireplace. While she was prepping the tinder and wood, I opened cans of beans and corn, pouring them into pots to warm up.

The others were in their hammocks, clustered together in the middle of the shelter. A loud rumble of thunder shook the building. Costia whimpered, whether from feeling weak and sick or because she didn’t like storms was unknown. Harper was almost asleep; her face turned most of the way into her pillow.

“This is boring.” Luke sighed. He shifted one way. Then he shifted the other. “I miss my \one.”

“I miss movies.” Harper yawned.

“I miss my straightener.” Costia pouted.

“I think we all miss a lot of things,” Raven said.

Octavia nodded as she stoked the flames, “I miss my sister.”

I placed a hand on her shoulder and squeezed, I miss her too. I miss my sisters and brother more than I’d ever thought possible. “What would Vera do?”

“She’d tell us something random to get the conversation going.” Octavia nudged me with her hip. “She knew that talking and joking around would help pass the time.”

“We’ve been together for almost a month now on this stupid trip and I don’t think any of us could say we know each other well.” Raven added. She sat in a hammock, allowing her feet to dangle off the side. “I mean, Clarke is my cousin and I know her. And I know Octavia because she’s always been around. But I don’t know anything about the rest of you.”

“We should play the question game then.” Harper sat up a bit, leaning on her elbows and smiling sleepily.

Octavia glanced over her shoulder at her, “what’s that?”

“We each take turns asking questions, the others have to answer or face a penalty.” Harper explained.

It actually sounded like fun. It’d pass the time. And maybe take our minds off the rumbling thunder and streaks of lightning growing closer.

“What’s the penalty?” Luke asked.

Harper hesitated to answer. Costia smiled her creepy smile and said, “Usually if you refuse to answer you have to remove an article of clothing.”

“We aren’t doing that.” Raven shook her head.

“How about whoever refuses to answer the most questions has to pull an extra long guard duty tonight?” Harper suggested.

After taking a moment to consider that, we all agreed. I was determined to not be the loser of this game. I was tired of guard duty.

“So who goes first? And are we asking the group in general or specific people?” I asked.

“Either. You just have to say who you’re asking before you ask the question.” Harper sat up more, sitting cross-legged in her hammock now. “Luke should go first, since he’s the oldest.”

“Okay, group question.” Luke said. He cleared his throat and smiled, “What was your favorite thing to do on the Internet?”

Raven, Octavia, and Lexa all dropped their eyes to the floor. Costia turned crimson. Harper laughed. I shook my head.

“I used to fall into the black hole that was Wikipedia.” I said. “I would look something up about some historical figure and hours later I’d find myself looking up the page for ‘high fives’ or whatever.”

“There’s a Wiki page on high fives?” Luke questioned, his face full of disbelief.

“Yes, and it was hilarious.” I giggled, remembering the various pictures that had accompanied the article.

“I read articles from scientific journals.” Harper said.

“Nerd.” Costia sneered.

That comment brought silence down on us. Costia usually reserved her snapping and growling for conversations with Raven or me. It was rare to see her strike out at Harper.

After a moment, Octavia cleared her throat. “I guess if we’re going clockwise it’s my turn.”

“Are you all refusing to answer Luke’s question?” I asked. When the guys nodded I dug through my bag for one of my pads of paper and a pen. I made a quick little chart and marked a tally next to their names. “Okay, noted. Go ahead Octavia.”

“Group question. What do you judge people for most often?” she asked quietly.

“Their breath.” Raven answered quickly. “Like, unless you have a medical condition, there is no reason anyone should be able to smell your breath from across the room.”

“Their intelligence,” Harper said. She didn’t elaborate.

“Their actions.” I added. I looked around the group and found all eyes on me. “I’m not saying I don’t ever judge people by other things, actions are just what I notice most often. It’s easy to say something, actually doing that thing is a whole other story.”

The others answered in turn. No one refused that question.

“Group question,” Raven said as soon as Lexa finished her explanation about why she judges people for their hands. “What is something other people are obsessed with that you can’t stand?”

“The Beatles!” I shout.

Before anyone can question me, the skies open and the downpour began. The thunder became almost a long continuous sort of rumble. The force of the wind had the empty hammocks swaying violently. Wordlessly, Harper left her hammock and crawled into Costia’s with a whimper the wind carried to my ears.

“The Beatles?” Luke repeated loudly, trying to distract the others from the violence of the storm. “Who hates the Beatles?”

“I didn’t stutter did I?” I shot back.

“They are overrated.” Octavia nodded. She lifted the pots from the fire and poured the food onto plates for us.

“I always hated that black sock fad.” Lexa said. “You know, the one where all teenage guys were supposed to wear crew cut black socks at all times. It was dumb.”

The rest of the group answers, Harper surprised me with her answer of students voting for class president or anything else for that matter. Costia countered with people thinking any snide comment is bullying. Then it’s Harper turn to ask a question.

“Costia,” she glanced at her friend. “If you could have a miniature form of any animal as a pet, what would it be and why?”

“Easy, a hippo. And that doesn’t need an explanation.” Costia smiled softly and knocked Harper’s shoulder with her own.

“I knew you were going to say that.” Lexa laughed.

“I like hippos. They’re adorable and deadly.” Costia shrugged, “It’s my turn now. Lexa, what is the one thing you wish you could back and undo?”

Instead of offering an off the cuff comeback, Lexa’s jaw clenched tightly. Costia smirked and shrugged, like she thought the answer was an easy one.

“Go ahead and tally that one.” Lexa glared at her as she bit the words out.

“Oh come on Lexa,” she pouted playfully. “I think we’d all like to know the answer to that question.”

“Clarke,” she said, turning to look at me. “Do you like your name?”

I hadn’t been expecting that. I thought she’d said my name to ensure I was marking the tally next to her name. “Ummmm…”

“That’s a good one!” Octavia clapped her hands. “I’ve never thought to ask her that!”

“I guess I do.” I said quietly. I’d never thought about it. It was my name; I didn’t have a choice in it. “I think I’m a Clarke. I don’t think there’s another name out there that would fit me quite so well.”

“I agree Clarke.” Harper said as she burrowed under Costia’s sleeping bag, apparently trying to hide from the thunder. “I can’t see you being a Jessica or Liz or whatever.”

“Thanks I guess,” I shrug. I didn’t know what else to say. I was happy to know people thought I fit my name. “So Lexa, what do you think is something everyone looks dumb doing?”

There was no hesitation in her voice as she answered quickly, “eating a banana.”

We all laughed at that, Octavia laughed so hard she fell of her hammock. Lexa just shrugged and repeated her answer.

“She’s right.” Raven wiped a tear away from her eye. “No one can ever look cool eating a banana. It’s so awkward.”

“What if you cut it up first?” Harper asked.

“Nope.” Luke shook his head. “I don’t know about the rest of you but I’d still picture someone eating a banana.”

The game carried on from there. We took turns, sometimes asking serious questions and sometimes asking whatever random thing popped into our heads. Surprisingly, Costia was the loser. She refused to answer eight questions. The next closest was Luke with six. Neither of them would answer any question that got even remotely personal.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> More rainy day fun times!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Spoilers I guess: If you haven't read Trek, then you're going to figure somethings out by reading this. You've been warned.
> 
>  
> 
> This takes place shortly after Luke's death.

It was almost like Mother Nature didn’t want us to leave Luke behind. We had no sooner buried him on that cliff than a random storm blew in. We hurried to secure our things, tossing bags into Luke’s empty tent before diving into our own.

“At least we’re on high ground,” Harper spoke loudly, trying to be heard over the raindrops pounding on the nylon.

“I’d rather be inside somewhere. Back at the campgrounds or whatever,” I replied. I shivered at the wind rocking the tent. "Somewhere secure. With a foundation would be amazing right now! With a fire place!"

“Are you whining already Griffin?” Lexa’s voice carried into the tent.

“I’m no whining! I’m just wishing we had a bit more protection from the elements.” I argued. “Do you have Aden with you?”

There was a pause before I heard the little boy giggle. Then Lexa replied, “I guess so?”

“Are you asking me?” I reached for the zipper on the flap in the doorway, wanting to see why Lexa’s voice sounded too close.

“Maybe?” she laughed.

“Woods, what are you up to?” I demanded as Harper moved my hand away from the fastener.

I heard more laughter followed by a thud. I heard Octavia’s loud laugh right after, “Boys will be boys!”

I struggled out of Harper’s grip, slapping her hands away as she tried to keep the tent closed up against the elements. Unzipping the door a bit, I peeked outside. The others were all out of their tents and playing in the rain. Aden was covered in mud from the top of his head all the way down to his feet.

“Lexa Woods!” I yelled. 

If I hadn’t been so incensed, the sight of the others frozen in place would have had me rolling with laughter. But the sight of Aden covered in mud, whether he was pleased with the situation or not, was all I could think about. We’d just buried our friend and now they want to play in the rain? What if they get sick again too?

“Clarke Griffin?” Lexa’s slightly more than slightly mocking voice cut into my overreacting.

“Get inside you tent. Now.” I bit out.

“It’s all good Clarke,” Octavia slid through the mud toward the door. “It’s just a spring rain. It’s warm. Like a nice shower.”

I shook my head, knowing what Octavia was going to try to do. Harper and I zipped the door closed again and held the pulls in our hands. “Go away!”

“Come outside!” Raven yelled.

“Come on Griffin!” Little Aden squeaked.

“No!” Harper yelled back. “We’re staying inside where it’s nice and dry!”

Suddenly we heard popping sounds coming from over our heads. Someone was taking the rain cover off!

“Stop!” I yelled, swatting at the sides of the tent. “You go play! Harper and I will just chill in here until the rain is gone!”

“Not good enough,” Octavia laughed harder. “Raven and I want you to come and play with us.”

“I will hurt you.” I growled.

Harper nodded, even though they couldn’t see her. She smacked at the side of the tent as she shouted, “I’ll hurt you worse! I was friends with Costia for years. I know things!”

That had them pausing. Harper wasn’t usually one for threats.

“You really just want to hang out in the tent all day?” Raven asked.

“Yes!” I shouted. “Go away! Leave us alone!”

We heard more popping and the tent shifted slightly. At first, I thought they’d ignored our pleas and were about to open our tent up for the rain to pour in. Instead Harper and I found ourselves enveloped in silence.

“Guys?” I called out.

Instead of an answer we just heard more whoops and laughter and thudding. Harper and I looked at each other, not sure what to make of the situation. Then I shrugged and released the zipper. If the others wanted us plotting revenge, they’d go ahead and try to force us into the rain. The ball was in their court.

After a while the laughter died down but the others remained in the rain. Harper and I napped off and on, when we were awake she read while I wrote. Basically we just had a true down day.

“Hey Griffin?” Lexa called out.

“Yes Woods?”

“Don’t panic,” she replied quietly.

The worst possible thing to say to someone when you wanted them to remain calm was ‘don’t panic’. The first thing that person is going to do is panic.

“What did you do?” I growled. I turned my head slightly; angling my head toward the last place I’d heard Aden rustling around.

“Nothing. The rains almost gone and you’re going to have to come out here. I just thought it’d be better if you knew not to panic.” Raven answered me. She was holding back laughter. I could hear it in her voice. That was never a good sign.

Harper reached for the zipper and pulled. She was out of the tent quicker than I’d ever seen her move. I was right behind her.

Arms wrapped around my waist and lifted me off the ground. I glanced over my shoulder and saw a grinning Lexa. Craning my neck I saw Harper in Raven’s arms.

I didn't like being tricked. The rain gently falling against my hair and face told me they'd done something to trick me. Looking back at the tent I could see the canopy they'd somehow rigged over it to keep the rain from hitting the nylon. Turning back to Lexa I snarled, “What are you doing?”

“Having fun?” Lexa shrugged.

I wanted to question her answer, I really did. Before I could say anything else, she started jogging. My brows pulled together in confusion.

“Have fun Griffin!” Aden’s voice called out from somewhere behind us.

“What – ” I turned back around to try to figure out where Raven and Lexa were taking us. When I saw the edge of the cliff approaching I started struggling.

“You’ll only make it worse Griffin,” Lexa whispered in my ear.

“I’m going to kill you!” I snapped, my hands pushing at the arms around my waist, my legs kicking.

Struggling didn’t help the situation at all. Lexa only ran faster as we approached the cliff. Then we were in the air. She was laughing. I was cursing. I could hear Harper and Raven somewhere next to us. Lexa let me go just before we hit the water.

It took a moment for me to get my bearings and kick my way up to the surface. I sputtered a bit; coughing out a little water I’d accidentally inhaled because I’d been screaming when I hit the water. Lexa’s head popped up next to me. I immediately shoved her head under the water again and started swimming toward the beach.

“You mad Griffin?” Lexa laughed. From the splashing behind me I could tell she was swimming too.

“I hate you,” I bit out.

Soon Harper and I were marching back to our camp, our wet hair and drenched clothes clinging to us. I glared at Octavia while she was bent over with her hands on her knees, laughing. Aden smiled sheepishly, like he thought he was in trouble.

“You’re okay Aden,” I reassured him. “I’m going to kill Woods, but you’re okay.”

“Better watch your backs!” Harper snarled. It was the meanest I’d ever heard her voice. She reached into Luke’s tent and grabbed our bags. Before heading back toward the beach and the small waterfall we’d discovered days earlier.

Soon Harper and I were almost feeling like people again. We’d used the waterfall as a makeshift shower before putting on clean clothing. We spread our drenched clothes out on rocks to dry in the now shining sun. Then we climbed back up to camp.

“You’re not really mad are you?” Raven asked as soon as she saw me.

“That cliff is at least thirty feet high,” I replied, my eyes narrowing on my cousin. “You know I don’t like heights. Yet you thought it would be a good idea to force me over that edge?”

“It was Lexa’s idea?” Raven shrugged. “We just wanted you two to join in the fun.”

“Sorry Griffin,” Lexa said from behind Raven.

“You do know I’m going to have to get you back right?” I replied, my head tilting a bit so I could make eye contact with her.

“You can try.” she shrugged and smirked.

I shook my head and snorted, “Oh no. I’m going to get you back Woods. I promise you that!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come see me!!
> 
> imaginaryhistorianme.tumblr.com


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We've had a gently rain with a friendly chat. We've had a playful day in the rain. Of course, not all rain storms are gentle. Especially not in Ohio.
> 
> Here comes the storm.
> 
>  
> 
> If you've read 'Trek' this takes place after Raven's leg is hurt, while she's recovering. (It takes place in Chapter 22...)
> 
> Oh! And in the beginning, Lexa is concerned Clarke is going to tell the others something Lexa said while she was asleep. It's Lexa's greatest secret!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and kudos are welcome! I like them!

“I’m serious, Clarke!” She sighed, like she thought the others were bound to find out her deepest secret in a matter of minutes.

“I won’t say a word. You might though,” I laughed loudly.

She started to growl something in response but a surprisingly high-pitched shriek from Raven drew her attention away. My cousin, who had been walking slowly around camp so she could build up her strength, was hopping toward my tent as quickly as she could.

“Raven?” I started to crawl from Lexa’s tent.

Just as my head popped out of the opening, the skies opened up. There are these things in Ohio we lovingly call ‘Ohio downpours’. Rain will start falling out of a clear blue sky, then the grey and purple clouds roll in, the wind picks up, and wherever you happen to be at the time becomes your new home for however long the microburst lasts. Sometimes it is just a short little spring rain, warm and fun to run around in, really fun to play a game of softball during those storms. Sometimes though, the wind whips around every corner like you’re in a wind tunnel and the rain seems to hit the ground so hard it bounces back up at you.

This storm was one of the scary ones. The sky was almost black. The wind was whistling. Lexa grabbed the waistband of my jeans and yanked me back into the tent. I barely righted myself before Aden came diving in with us. He clambered into my lap and buried his head in my neck as Lexa zipped the flap closed behind him.

“Clarkey!” He whimpered.

“It’s okay, A,” I hushed. Rubbing my hands up and down his back I started rocking gently. I pressed a soft kiss to the side of his head, just above his ear. In the calmest voice I could manage I said, “We’re safe here. You now Lexa and I won’t let anything happen to you right?”

“I don’t like the lights and the booms,” Aden cried, clinging even tighter.

“Aden, the lightning can’t hurt us if we’re safe. And we’re as safe as we can be right?” Lexa reminded him. “The trees around us are way taller than the tent. That’s what the lightning likes, height. Not little bitty tents.”

Before the boy could whimper out a response a roll of thunder shook the tent. My eyes flew to Lexa’s. I wasn’t a big fan of storms either. I’d seen one too many movies about tornadoes as a child thanks to my sister Anthony’s obsessions with weather.

“You’re both okay,” Lexa assured calmly. She wrapped her arms around the both of us. “I’ve got you. You’re okay.”

“I don’t believe you, Woods,” Aden whined, sounding surprisingly like me.

“Not you too,” Lexa groaned. “I can’t win today.”

I smirked at my girlfriend, scared out of my mind because of the wind and the thunder but feeling just a smidge better knowing she was there. I watched her drop her head down a little so she was closer to Aden. Her lips moved some more, whispering things to the child I couldn’t hear over the wind. I was about to attempt to join the conversation that was drawing Aden’s face out of the crook of my neck when I heard it.

It sounded like a train.

“Lexa,” I said as I latched onto her arm, my nails digging into her skin.

“Clarke?” Her eyes met mine.

“That sound,” I said loudly.

“A train?” Aden perked up at the thought. “Will it save us from the booms?”

I pulled Aden’s arms from around my neck and handed him off to Lexa. Once I was sure she had a grip on the boy I unzipped the flap. The sky was an odd greyish-green. The train-like sound was growing louder. Through the rain I could just barely make out Raven and Harper leaning out of my tent. When I saw Harper point to the right and nodded, I knew I was right.

“We have to get to the creek,” I yelled at Lexa.

“Why?” She shouted back, cradling Aden’s head to her chest.

“That isn’t a train, Lexa,” I replied. When she started to say something else I shook my head. “We don’t have time! We have to go! I’m going to help Octavia with Raven. You just get Aden to the creek. Harper’s already on her way there.”

Before Lexa could argue I was out of the tent and in the cold rain. I slipped and slid through the mud to my tent, meeting Octavia at the door. Raven was trying to stand but the slickness of the mud made it almost impossible for her. Finally Octavia reached down and grabbed her by the back of her shirt and hauled her to her feet. I moved to her left side and pulled her arm around my shoulder.

“Where do we go?” Octavia yelled as we started running.

“The creek!” Raven answered. She winced at the pressure on her leg but never really faltered in her strides. She pointed in the direction the others had gone. “Harper said something about needing to be in a depression or something.”

Octavia nodded and started moving faster. I couldn’t tell you how many times we almost fell on that 150-yard dash to the narrow but deep creek bed. Probably twice as much as we actually fell. By the time we actually lowered Raven into the creek, I’d given up helping her because I’d pulled her down on top of me four times already.

Jumping down into the creek, I wiped the water and muck from my face. “Lexa!”

“We’re here!” Harper’s voice answered.

Moving toward the sound, this time with Octavia carrying Raven on her back, we found our friends huddled under a small bridge. Harper held Aden close while Lexa was braced in front of them, her arms on either side of Harper and the child. I moved to Harper’s side and rested my hand on Aden’s back. Octavia helped Raven lean against the opposite side of the creek bed and took up a protective stance around her.

“Clarkey!” Aden’s shouted whimper yanked my attention back to him.

“You okay?” I leaned in, pressing my lips to his ear so I didn’t have to shout. There were enough loud noises happening around us already.

“I’m scared!” He reached up with one arm and pulled me into a tight hug.

Harper hushed him gently, “I told you we’re as safe as can for the moment, A.”

I nodded, hoping we really were safe. I’d never liked basements or cellars very much but at that moment I’d have been more than fine with the darkest, dankest, creepiest cellar in existence if it got us out of that storm.

“Long or short?” Lexa’s voice cut into my clouded thoughts.

“What?” I glanced up at her, causing Aden’s arm to press on my windpipe a little.

“These things don’t last long usually. Do you think it’s almost over?” Lexa asked.

I didn’t know why she was asking me. I had no idea. I never once tried to predict how an Ohio downpour was going to go. “I have no clue.”

“Tornadoes don’t last long on the ground. The sound is already growing weaker,” Harper answered for me. When Aden’s head snapped up at the ‘t’ word, she smiled down at him. “Now how many kids can say they’ve out run a tornado?”

“I’d rather not have that to brag about!” Raven yelled from a few feet away. “As badass as it makes us look, that was scary!”

“Yeah!” Aden shouted in agreement. “So scary!”

“But we’re all okay?” I asked, my eyes glancing down at Raven’s leg.

Raven nodded while Octavia knelt next to her. She poked at the barely healed cut that ran along Raven’s calf. After a minute or two of studying and poking Octavia stood again. By the time she was completely upright again, the sound was gone.

“She isn’t bleeding. I think she’s okay.” Octavia assured us. Then she glanced back at Raven, “you’ll probably be ridiculously sore tomorrow though.”

“Tomorrow?” Raven scoffed. She lifted her foot up and rotated her ankle in a circle. Wincing through the motion, Raven arched a brow at my best friend, “I’m already sore. I kind of wish we’d cut the thing off right now.”

“Raven?” I pulled out of Aden’s hug to embrace my cousin.

“Probably just karma for that dare with Bubbe’s laundry shoot…” Raven sighed. Then she straightened and glared down at me, “you know, karma wouldn’t be after me if you’d turn down a dare every once in a while, Clarke!”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come and see me! Leave a question or a prompt! Or just say hi!
> 
> imaginaryhistorianme.tumblr.com

**Author's Note:**

> Come and see me! Leave a prompt! Ask a question! Whatever!
> 
> imaginaryhistorianme.tumblr.com


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